MP: Hindu families threaten to leave Surana alleging harassment; govt brokers resolution

In a shocking development, many Hindu families from Madhya Pradesh's Surana have threatened to leave Ratlam district, alleging harassment from people of a different community. As per reports, the Hindu families have issued a written complaint to the district collector on Tuesday, giving an ultimatum of three days. Visuals from Ratlam show locked houses with the legend 'This house is sold' written in Hindi in bold red letters.

MP: Hindu families threaten to leave Surana

Taking cognizance of the issue, MP Home Minister Narrottam Mishra refuted a religious angle to the issue claiming it was a dispute of 'illegal encroachment' between parties. He stated that Surana will not become another 'Kairana' referring to the exodus of Hindu families from the UP village. He added that a committee has been set up for the peaceful resolution of the issue - including SDM, SDP, and two people from each community respectively.

"The conspiracy to make Surana the 'Kairana' of Madhya Pradesh will not be allowed to succeed. The reason for the dispute is illegal encroachment and other local minor issues, which will be resolved soon. A committee has been constituted for peaceful resolution of the dispute. Along with the SDM and SDOP, two representatives from both sides have been included in the committee formed on the Surana case," said Mishra.

Kairana 2016 Exodus

In June 2016, Kairana BJP MP Hukum Singh had claimed that 346 families had left Kairana after being 'harassed' in Shamli district. His allegations were refuted by the Samajwadi Party govt stating 'no such exodus had taken place in the town'. BJP had made the issue a major poll plank in the 2017 elections, dubbing the 'Hindu exodus' as a major concern.

Recently, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath visited Kairana and met the residents who have now returned after migrating in 2016 due to allegedly receiving threats. Addressing a public meeting in Kairana, Adityanath said, "Peace has returned to Kairana since 2017, due to the state government’s zero-tolerance for crime policy. The earlier governments in Uttar Pradesh criminalised politics. I interacted with some families who were victims of political criminalization of previous governments."

He added, "Kairana exodus is not a political issue for us. Be it the Muzaffarnagar riots or the Kairana migration, this has not been a political issue for us, but the issue of heat coming on the pride and dignity of the state and the country. Even when we were not in power, we used to say that we will not accept such cowardly acts".